Five Things for Tuesday

1. New journals! I’m a huge fan of writing for oneself, as I’ve mentioned, and have been writing up a storm these last few months.

I ordered this one off Etsy a couple days ago and it just arrived, even more perfect than I’d hoped. I’m really picky about the kind of journal I write in, and must have: unlined paper, a unique cover, and must not look mass-produced. This is made out of a recycled book, and I love the faux library card insert the artist put in the back cover.

2. Single lady dinner! A friend recently sent me this book, which is a collection of essays by writers (including Ann Patchett and Haruki Murakami, two of my very favorites) about the rituals of cooking and eating alone. Do we make the same kind of elaborate meals we would make for family or friends? Do we assemble random ingredients similar to a pregnant woman’s cravings? What is our ultimate dish to eat in private? I love it.

In the third essay, “Beans and Me,” Jeremy Jackson describes the meal he makes for himself night after night: beans + cheesy rice (or sometimes beans + cornbread). Reading about it on the crosstown bus, I was salivating. So last night, I had to make it myself. And it was the best rice and beans I’ve ever had. You’re probably rolling your eyes and thinking, “Come on, Katie, how good can rice and beans be?” I’ll tell you. Jackson uses canned beans, but instead of draining and rinsing them as I normally would, he first sautés garlic and onion in oil and then dumps the entire can, liquid and all, into the pot to simmer. Uh-mazing. On the side, Green Giant Cheesy Rice + Broccoli (bought with a coupon from the company… surprisingly delicious!) and steamed butternut squash. Heavenly dinner alone.

3. Single lady desserts! I made Katie’s Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookie for One over the weekend, and I experimented just about every way I could. I tried using pumpkin first (instead of oil) and nuking it in the microwave, but it came out sort of rubbery. I tried again in the microwave, this time using oil. Again, spongey and not at all crisp. I was craving a cookie, which is as much about texture as flour and chocolate, so I started a third time, this time using coconut oil and baking it in the oven.

I baked it in a ramekin and ate it with a spoon. Third time’s a charm! All that was missing was the ice cream.4. A special “chipment” from popchips! I went out for spinach, and came back to this heavenly sight on my doormat. If you’ve read my blog in the last couple months, you’ve probably noticed my obsession with these air-popped chips. And up until a couple months ago, I didn’t really have an opinion about chips… I could take ‘em or leave ‘em. But popchips? I had to have them every day. Somehow the company must have heard about my obsession, because this box showed up on my doorstep, complete with two new-to-me flavors: Parmesan Garlic and Jalepeño. 5. I want to hook you up, too!On behalf of popchips anonymous (ahem), one US reader will win the same sample pack you see above. And before you go ahead and say you couldn’t possibly finish those all yourself, know that I, too, was once a non-believer. Those things won’t last two weeks!Want to win? Here are 3 ways to enter!1. Leave a comment with your favorite meal to make for yourself. Rice and beans? Grilled cheese? Banana-pickle sandwiches? Let’s have ‘em!2. What’s your favorite savory snack? (Other than popchips, of course .) I’m always on the lookout for things to bring to school!3. Tweet this contest @lilveggiepatch + @popchips.You have until Friday morning to enter. In the mean time, I’ll be building myself a lil’ chip-nest.

The giveaway is now closed. The winner is: Congratulations, Nikki! Please send me an e-mail with your mailing address.

patti

My favorite meal is turkey chili in the crock pot, kale chips and a cold beer!

Nicole G

Favorite meal to make for myself? Tofu/hummus sandwich with spinach and tomato. Simple but delicious! I also like making my own mock vegetarian spaghettios – TJ’s meatless meatballs, a serving of pasta, TJ’s creamy tomato soup. So warm and comforting.

Popchips are so yummy! My favorite alone meal is stir-fry veggies, TJ’s soyaki sauce, and slightly buttery/salty brown rice! My favorite savory snack is probably soft pretzels…does that count as a snack or a meal? W/e they just rock!

Catherine

My home alone meal is always a plate full of side-dish veggies. When the meat-eating boyfriend is away, I can help myself to all of the vegetables As for snacks, I have been known to eat an entire bag of goldfish in one sitting…

My fav meal to make for myself is a bagel with jam, swiss cheese, and sliced pear on top! YUM!

My fav savory snack is Peanutbutter crackers!

I tweeted the link – @Christianqt07

Lacey

The dishes I make home alone tend to be pretty random. Usually they are dependent on what leftovers are currently in the fridge or if I’m craving something. Often it’s a mixture of some form of protein (beans, tuna, tofu) and whatever veggies saute off the fastest. Cover it all with srirachi, soy sauce, honey, and all three cravings of mine are met – sweet, savory, spicy.

Lacey

Dill pickle chips or jalepeno chips are my most favorite savory snack. But those aren’t usually in my house, so I default to edamame steamed and then tossed in a mixture of chili powder, cayenne, salt, cilantro and lime/lemon juice. Totally addicting!

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naturally delicious and healthier. that’s popchips. when they said it couldn’t be done, we raised the snack bar. how do we do it? well, first, let’s talk about how we don’t do it. we never fry our chips. that just puts a lot of stuff in there that we could all do without. we never bake our chips either. that just takes a lot of flavor out, which, as snackers, we simply can’t do without. so we came up with a chip like no snack aisle has seen (or taste bud has tasted). thanks to the magic of popping, we found a way to pop all the flavor in, while keeping fake stuff and at least half the fat of regular flavored chips out.

the magic of popping.
popping is a way of making our naturally delicious chips. we start with the finest ingredients, add a little heat and pressure, and pop! it’s a chip. all that’s added is a flavorful blend of seasonings to create taste-bud popping flavors that appeal to the whole family. pop open a bag of popchips and try for yourself. everybody has a favorite. or two.

naturally delicious. nothing fake or phony.
our pledge: no fake colors, no fake flavors, no preservatives, no fluorescent orange fingertips, and no wiping your greasy chip hand on your jeans. no, really. we only use ingredients you can feel good about eating. and we leave out the bad stuff, like hydrogenated oils and msg, that give snacking a bad name. because popchips have no preservatives, make sure to get a good chip clip after opening the bag to keep our popped chips fresh. or better yet, just eat them all at once.

Five Things for Tuesday | Lilveggiepatch

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